Fear of flying
by DanishPastriesandmore
Summary: Ludwig was definitely not afraid of flying. Certainly not. Well, maybe. Especially compared to the chatty Italian sitting next to him on the flight. Gerita, Oneshot, Human AU.


Hello, hello, I used to be called **Queenjaffacake** , but I have changed my username because I never really liked that username and just used it because I've used it on other times. I will now be called **danishpastriesandmore** , because for some reason, this food related name is more palatable for me.

Please follow me on tumblr under the url **danishpastriesandmore .** Please. I'm desperate. Actual link in my profile.

Anyway, short oneshot. I'm working on a longer story, but this is an idea I've had for a while.

* * *

Ludwig was definitely not afraid of flying.

Absolutely not.

 _Maybe_ when he was younger, he was scared. When his grandfather booked a holiday for him and his brother Gilbert to go to Morocco he had begged and screamed not to go. His grandfather eventually cancelled the tickets and they drove to the Netherlands the whole trip. Gilbert had been sour the whole trip.

But now, he had matured, and his reason for not travelling by air was for, budgetary reasons. He was from Germany, and Germany bordered many countries. You could see the whole of Europe by road and rail, and visit places along the way of your journey, which was _far_ better than just getting on a plane and hopping over all the sights to reach your destination.

So, he may have unconsciously made a vow to never step a foot on a plane, but that was just sensible!

But, alas, he was now travelling to a country that road and rail couldn't take him to from Germany.

 _Canada._

His brother travelled around for his job as a brand salesman, but was settling down in Toronto because he had met a pretty Canadian girl named Madeline. He now wanted Ludwig to meet her. He was supposed to be introduced to her when Gilbert visited Germany with her in the summer, but her grandmother fell ill so neither came. Gilbert had been so disappointed, and after hours of pleading, Ludwig eventually agreed to come over the next time he was off work.

It had taken him a while to win over because of the _pure expense_ of the trip, and he _didn't_ need his brothers reassurances that travelling by air was statistically the safest or whatever.

"I'll set you up with a nice Canadian man, it'll be great!" Gilbert had asked, and Ludwig had put the phone down after that, fearing that protesting would encourage Gilbert more in a twisted way.

But now he was waiting to board his flight. He watched as other planes went down the runway and lifted off into the air, _how on earth was this natural, humans weren't meant to fly-_

 _Perhaps a fear of the expense is slightly untruthful,_ Ludwig admitted to himself. Was he trying to deny this fear? Why had he decided to come to terms with it in an _airport_ of all places?

"Airways Flight 678 to Toronto Canada is now ready for boarding."

Oh no.

* * *

He found his stomach settling a bit when he sat himself down in his numbered seat. It was the middle seat, and he found himself being sandwiched between two men.

This wasn't so bad, it was a bit like a train, he thought to himself. But after 10 minutes the plane started moving.

The worry started piling in his stomach. It was taxiing onto the runways.

"I love flying, do you? If I could fly everywhere I would, it's so quick!" He heard an accented voice speaking German say. He turned to his right to see the man by the window seat talking to him. A slight brunette man was sitting by the window. He was definitely _attractive_ , and Ludwig was a little surprised that someone was trying to make conversation on a plane with _him_.

"Well, this is my first time." he answered back dumbly.

The brunette man looked at him and smiled. "Wow, so exciting! You must be a little nervous!"

Ludwig tried to shrug it off, but he wondered if the paleness of his face gave anything away. "W-well, first time for everything." He murmured.

The man smiled at him. "Yes, of course!" The man started babbling about his first time flying, and Ludwig tried to listen but he was starting to feel the plane moving, and then the pilot announcing they were getting ready to take off.

Suddenly, the plane was jiggling.

 _Was it supposed to move like this?_

The Italian man was still talking, they were speeding down the runway, and Ludwig gripped his arms rests more.

"Hey, are you okay?" He heard the man ask, but Ludwig didn't reply in fear that he might be sick. The plane eventually started to lift of the ground, and Ludwig could feel his breathing grow quicker, and the lights in the cabin made him feel ill, and now they were flying, oh god they were all going to die-

"Hey, it's ok!" He heard the cheery man say, and he felt someone grasp his hand. Ludwig was surprised at the gesture, but didn't move his hand away. It actually helped calm him, and he felt to be brought back down to reality.

"Hey, what's your name?"

"Ludwig." He said through clenched teeth.

"Hey, I'm Feliciano! So Ludwig, why are you going to Canada?"

"To see my brother and his girlfriend who live there."

"That's cool, I'm going to meet a uni friend called Kiku who lives there now. See, we went to university in Germany even though he's from Japan and I'm from Italy, he moved on to Canada and I stayed in Germany! I'm a chef at an Italian restaurant in Frankfurt, which is really fun because it helps decrease the homesickness."

Ludwig nodded, and listen to Feliciano talk about his favourite dishes to make, and felt his anxiety decrease. Feliciano's chirping was pleasant and helped him not focus on the fact that he was in a metal box flying above the earth. He turned to face the Italian directly, but glanced out of the window. Oh god, they were so high, he could see tiny houses...

Feliciano shut the window blind "No point in seeing that, is there?" He said cheerily and smiled at Ludwig.

Ludwig smiled back, and then looked down to see Feliciano still clasping his hand. He blushed and pulled it back suddenly.

"Oh sorry! I was just trying to calm you." He said desperately. "Sorry if I crossed boundaries."

Ludwig shook his head. "It's fine. I'm fine now, don't worry." He tried to say with confidence but the shakiness in his voice gave him away. "Thanks for the help" he added a little pathetically.

"Hey, let's get you some water." Feliciano said and pressed for a stewardess to come. "Its fine, I've had a panic attack once!"

A panic attack. Ludwig supposed that's what he had just gone through.

This was so embarrassing.

He drank some water and felt his nerves calm. This wasn't so bad. The plane was still now, and he could barely notice any difference from when they were on the ground.

Ground...

The thought of being so high made his stomach churn yet again.

"Let's watch a film, yeah?" Feliciano suggested. Ludwig nodded and he turned to TV screens.

* * *

It was an 8 hour flight. 8 hours in total. That was a long time to be above the clouds when he didn't even feel comfortable.

He had however fallen asleep after the film, which killed around five hours. He then woke up, and was relieved that they were nearly at their destination. Feliciano was dozing next to him, and Ludwig felt pretty relaxed as they eventually started descending. This wasn't so bad...

Then the plane started to vibrate.

"This is your captain speaking, we've hit some turbulence so if everyone could fasten their seat belts as we continue descending."

He felt sick.

Feliciano had stretched and moaned at the captain's announcements, and looked over to him. Feliciano seemed to notice Ludwig's pale face, and immediately went into a worry.

"Hey, it's all right!" Feliciano said desperately. Ludwig felt bad for worrying him.

He shouldn't have listened to his brother. He should have stayed at home. His brother was an idiot anyway, and his brother's girlfriend would realise that and dump him soon, and this trip would be for _nothing_.

"Ludwig, don't hyperventilate."

"Is he ok?" One of the stewardesses asked from the street. Ludwig wearily looked up, and nodded to the stewardess. The man on his left tsked at Ludwig's state, and Ludwig would have sent him a glare if he felt like it.

"We're nearly there, Ludwig!" Feliciano said, and Ludwig nodded weakly. The plane eventually stopped jiggling so much, and Ludwig's frayed nerves settled, but the descent was still pretty scary. Eventually Ludwig could feel the plane getting lower and lower, and then the plane eventually landed. Feliciano had held his hand again for the entire landing procedure.

He could've kissed the ground as he stumbled into the airport lounge. Feliciano was right behind him as they waited for their luggage.

"Thanks, er, for the plane" he said awkwardly. "I appreciate it."

Feliciano smiled. "That's all right, I mean I can't do a lot, I can just talk. I find talking helps, but people say I talk too much. Like my brother. He says I talk too much, especially when I meet new people. Like right now! Haha!" Feliciano added, a little nervously.

Ludwig nodded. "No, I appreciated the talking. I feel so ridiculous now..." God this was embarrassing. A _stranger_ had went out of his way to comfort him on a plane when he should really be _better_ and more confident. _Children_ behaved better on that plane. Children weren't scared. Why was he?

"It's fine, we are all scared of certain things! It's like sometimes I get anxious that I'm in the female bathrooms by mistake, even though I can see that there are urinals on the wall."

Ludwig wasn't sure if that made him feel better, of it was really comparable, but he appreciated the effort. "Well, thank you." he said. He watched as the attractive Italian smile at him.

"So why are you so afraid of flying?"

Ludwig shrugged. "I don't... _really_ know. Plane crashes on the news always freaked me out when I was young, and it never seems natural to be so _high_." He didn't add the extra 'and I have little control over a situation when it goes wrong in the air', but that seemed a little bit too personal.

Feliciano nodded. "That makes sense. I know of a friend of a friend who had the same problem and said that he went through some therapy. Err, have you ever thought of that?"

Ludwig shuffled. It had crossed his mind, any treatment for this crippling aversion, but he had decided against it and theorised he would never travel by plane. "I'll think about it."

Feliciano tapped his foot and looked at his watch, and his eyes widened. "I'm sorry, I've got to go, I have to get another flight to Vancouver. Um, it was nice meeting you!" Feliciano said.

"Uh, you too!" Ludwig replied. He watched as the man looked like he was going to say something, but stopped himself and then turned away.

Ludwig watched him walk away. He felt his stomach churn, and couldn't help but feel like he would regret not going after him.

So, he buckled up his common sense and went after him. He tapped Feliciano on the shoulder. "Hey, uh, Feliciano, uh, I may have gotten the wrong impression, but when we're both back in Germany, would you like to go for a drink with me? As a date." he added lamely. He felt like an awkward fool, but he was determined to hold the Italian's gaze.

He was relieved when Feliciano beamed. "Of course- let's exchange numbers." They did so and Ludwig smiled. "I can't wait to hear from you! But I really have to go!" Feliciano said apologetically.

"Of course" Ludwig said, trying to compose himself as he watched Feliciano hurry away.

He moved to the front of the airport, and his mind was swirling with the events of the day, and he felt drained but also elated.

He almost didn't notice his brother pull up to him in a car. "Hey bro, how was the flight?" Gilbert asked. Ludwig thanked him internally that he was being sincere for once.

"Uh. I'm not looking forward to doing it again." And now he had to just make his way back to Germany.

That would be interesting.

* * *

Short oneshot. Please review with positive and negative feedback!


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